Gladiolus plant named ‘Golden Goddess’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct gladiolus variety, designated ‘Golden Goddess’, is shown and described. Compared to the ‘Goldfield’ variety, the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety can also maintain six flowers in open bloom simultaneously in a water after harvest. The claimed variety differs from ‘Goldfield’ in that the ‘Goldfield’ variety produces stems that are 10 cm shorter with one to two less florets per stem.

The present invention comprises a new and distinct variety of aGladiolus l. referred to by the variety name ‘Golden Goddess.’

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS

FIG. 1 is a photograph of a ‘Golden Goddess’ variety plant in bloom.

FIG. 2 is a drawing illustrating the shape and size of the petals.

ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION

The new variety was originated by the Applicant in a controlledproprietary breeding program in Ft. Myers, Fla. wherein selectedgladiolus varieties were crossed. (The provisional breeder's designation“3-10” was used in a related application for a Community plant varietyright filed earlier in the European Union Community Plant VarietyOffice). The female parent was a salmon pink gladiolus variety named‘Jennie Lee’ an unpatented released variety (by Jennie Lee Zipperer)characterized in part by a long stem, long head, and high floret count(i.e. 18-20 florets). The male parent was an unpatented rich yellowgladiolus variety named ‘Goldfield,’ characterized in part by having agood stem length, 15-16 florets, and a susceptibility to diseases suchas Fusarium, Curvalaria, and Botrytis. The seeds were planted in Ft.Myers, Fla., and the selection of ‘Golden Goddess’ variety was made inSpring 1988. Asexual reproduction of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety wasachieved by collecting cormels from the first corm and growing saidcormels to maturity in Ft. Myers, Fla. All subsequent asexualreproductions of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety remain true to theoriginal variety type.

BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The accompanying color photograph (FIG. 1) shows the inflorescence andvarious stages of blooming of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety plant. Theplant was 98 days old when color of the flower was first seen (i.e.bloom tight condition), 100 days old when the bloom first opened (i.e.bloom perfect condition), and 103 days old when the bloom was declining(i.e. bloom going down).

The following botanical description, except for color, of the ‘GoldenGoddess’ variety was observed when the plant was 98 days old grown underthe following conditions in Ecuador:

1) Twelve-hour daylight days with high light intensity;

2) Temperatures: 58-60° F. (low's) and 69-75° F. (high's);

3) Humidity: 50-55%

4) Rainfall: 2-3 inches/month.

All color descriptions with respect to parts of the variety, where coloris a distinguishing feature, are made to The Royal Horticultural SocietyColour Chart (R.H.S.), except where terms of ordinary usage anddictionary meaning are used. Color observations with respect to TheR.H.S. Colour Chart were made in the Netherlands under similarenvironmental conditions as described above, but at increased daylengths of 12 to 17 hours and 50% to 65% humidity.

The spike of the plant is about 130 cm and comprises 16 florets whengrown from #2 size corms (1.25 to 1.50 inches) in Ecuador. The color ofthe spike is Yellow Green 144C. The stem diameter below the first floretis about 1.2 cm. It should be noted, however, that various factors willaffect spike length, including temperature (larger spikes occur incooler weather and longer day lengths), irrigation, light intensity,fertilization, soil type (larger spikes occur in heavy soils versussandy soil), and bulb size (larger bulbs result in larger spikes).

The leaf color of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety is Green Group 137B. Theleaf size is about 90 cm (length) by 3.5 cm (width).

The bud size of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety is about 8 cm in length.The flowers of the variety each consist of a total of six petals ofthree different arrangements. In one arrangement, each bloom consists oftwo large petals oriented on the top part of the bloom, and twomedium-size petals and two small-size petals oriented on the lower partof the bloom. In a second arrangement, the bloom consists of two largepetals oriented on the top part of the bloom and three medium-sizedpetals and one small-sized petal oriented on the lower half of thebloom. Another arrangement consists of three large petals in the upperhalf of the bloom, two medium petals between 2:00 and 10:00 (referringto the face of a clock) on the lower half of the bloom, and one smallpetal positioned generally between 5:00 and 7:00 on the lower half ofthe bloom. FIG. 2 illustrates the shape and size of the large petals.

The diameter of the entire bloom is about 11 cm when grown from a #2size corm in Ecuador. A stem cut with one bloom showing color takes twodays for the first bloom to open completely. The bloom will hold open inperfect condition for 2.5 to 3 days. The spike will bloom for a periodof eleven days.

The color of the corolla bloom tight is Yellow Group 2B. The color ofthe bloom in open perfect condition is Yellow Group 4B for the large andmedium petals and Yellow Group 7D for the small petals. A small splashof Red Purple Group 64A can also be observed deep within the throat ofthe bloom. When the open flower starts to decline, the foregoing colorsof the bloom remain the same.

The variety has three stamens and one pistil. The color of the pistilhead and pistil stem is Green Yellow Group 1D. The color of the stamenhead is Yellow White Group 158C. The color of the stamen stem is GreenWhite Group 157D. With respect to the stamen, at the top of the stamenstem before the stamen head, the color changes to Red Purple 70B.

The corms of the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety are typical for the gladiolusand have a Greyed-Orange Group 170C color under the husk on the top ofthe bulb one day after harvest.

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

The ‘Golden Goddess’ variety takes about 98 days to harvest, afterplanting, when grown from a #2 size corm in Ecuador. The variety canmaintain six flowers in open bloom simultaneously in a vase of waterafter harvest from a stem just beginning to show color. Thischaracteristic is similar to the variety's parent, ‘Goldfield,’ (alsothe most similar variety to ‘Golden Goddess’), which requires 94 days toharvest after planting. The claimed variety differs from the ‘Goldfield’variety in that the ‘Goldfield’ variety produces stems 10 cm shorterthan ‘Golden Goddess.’ In addition, the ‘Goldfield’ variety produces oneto two florets less than the claimed variety.

When compared to the ‘Jennie Lee’ parent variety, which harvests 84 daysafter planting, the ‘Golden Goddess’ variety is 14 days slower toharvest. The stem lengths are similar (i.e. about 130 cm when grown froma #2 size corm), but the ‘Jennie Lee’ variety produces one to two moreflorets per stem.

The ‘Golden Goddess’ variety has a good resistance to attack byCurvalaria fungi species but is similar to other yellow gladiolusvarieties in that it is susceptible to Botrytis. The variety grows wellthroughout the entire year during both short and long day lengths. Thevariety also shows a good resistance to burning in hot weather.

The variety does not emit a fragrance.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct gladiolus variety of plant, ‘GoldenGoddess’, as shown and described herein.